Description of Prior Art
Conventional automotive vehicle dynamometer designs include test bench and chassis dynamometers.
Test bench dynamometers are very accurate because the vehicle power plant is connected directly to the dynamometer. This design has the disadvantage of the time and effort required to remove, test, and replace the power plant.
Chassis dynamometers are more convenient to use than bench test dynamometers but are not as accurate because of the indirect connection between the vehicle power plant and the dynamometer, such as when the tires of a wheeled vehicle drive dynamometer rollers. Chassis dynamometers require a large support structure, are expensive to manufacture and difficult to transport.
It is well known that the performance of an automotive vehicle power plant can be calculated by measuring the rate at which the power plant accelerates a flywheel of known moment of inertia. The present invention uses a unique flywheel assembly to overcome the disadvantages of conventional dynamometer designs.